toy_islandsfandomcom-20200215-history
Plastics industry in Krakozhia
The plastics industry in Krakozhia has developed over several decades into one of the world's biggest, having been driven by rapid modernisation of the economy, construction, infrastructure, and manufacturing industries after the end of the Second World War. History In 1956, the Chemistry Conference and the Fourth Krakozhian Art Exposition were held, as well as the Krakozhian Workers' Party's Fifth Party Congress, all of which would be particularly important for the development of the Krakozhian synthetics and consumer industries. The Fifth Party Congress called for the improvement of people's living standards to match those in the West, whilst the Fourth Krakozhian Art Exposition was the first to officially showcase modern design. The Chemistry Conference resulted in the proclamation of the Chemistry Programme, which along with calling for greater investment in the chemicals industry to help stimulate growth in other areas of the national economy also provided a comprehensive vision of the future of the socialist economy, which was to be used by the government to gain the support of the people. The chemicals industry was to be inextricably linked to the Krakozhian socialist ideological project, with the success of the Chemistry Programme being linked to the future triumph of socialism. On a pragmatic note, the synthesis of plastics was projected to help deal with research shortages by replacing traditional materials with plastics. The usefulness of plastics had been realised even before the announcing of the Chemistry Programme, for example with plastics replacing metals in car chassis. Furthermore, in 1955 a weekly magazine had run a feature listing different coal-based plastic products used in everyday life, such as plastic lamps, nylon stockings, and laminated tabletops. Nylon stockings in particular was an important symbol of postwar hopes for affluence, and the central role plastics had played in the West German economic miracle sent echoes out to East Germany and other Eastern Bloc states, including Krakozhia. The Chemistry Programme was split into two phases, the first preparing for the second and being one year long, the second being five years long. Phase one called for a massive increase in chemicals production based on increased work discipline, quotas, and investment. The second phase focused on shifting from using coal to oil, which was to be supplied by Tabi'atstan. The main emphasis of both phases was on plastics and synthetic fibres, as well as creating plastics that could help industries function better and at lower costs rather than just creating more plastics. In 1957, the leaders of the Toy Islands socialist states met in Tikomira to discuss their chemification strategy, with the basic consensus being that they should pool their natural and intellectual resources to catch up with and ultimately surpass Western advances in the field of plastics. In reality, Krakozhia was to contribute the most to this strategy as it had the most advanced plastics industry of all the Tabi'atstani bloc states, and the majority of scientists and officials who led meetings for developing the chemification strategy were Krakozhian. Planning After the shock of the 1953 strikes in East Germany and the 1953 uprising in Krakozhia, the Krakozhian government realised that it would need to satisfy the population's consumer needs to prevent a similar event breaking out again. Numerous bureaucratic organs were thus created to deal with the provision of goods and services, including the Ministry of Light Industry, the Ministry of Automobile Construction, the Ministry of Construction, and the Ministry of Chemistry. The Ministry for Trade and Provisioning also opened numerous new types of stores such as trade organisation stores, "self-service stores" (such as "1,000 Small Things" and "Chemistry in the Home"), and specialty and boutique stores. Seeking to create an autarkical economy, the Krakozhian government noted that the use of plastics was imperative to cut reliance on foreign imports of traditional materials, and thus the use of plastics in consumer materials was guaranteed in Krakozhia. By 1960, industrial designers were having a real effect on the plastics industry, with the head of the Central Institute for Design often corresponding with the People's Economic Council (i.e. the State Planning Commission), the Politburo, and the Central Committee, giving information to factories as to what kinds of plastics were needed by designers in their products. Furthermore, the Central Institute for Design, being directly subordinate to the Council of Ministers, was given a seat at the Council of Ministers, and its head being given the title of state secretary. However, chaos continued to reign as the chemicals industry had been insufficiently centralised, resulting in huge wastage and an inability to coordinate resources. As such, the Plastics Steering Office and the Ministry for Material Economy were created in 1967 to create a more coordinated system and oversee the distribution of plastics. The Plastics Steering Office was to investigate mistakes, abuses, and shortfalls in the network of producers and needs-carriers in the plastics industry, and was given power to request information from any factory or other organ involved in the production of plastics. Furthermore, it had legal backing to have its opinion enforced, making it an organisation with actual power. Finally, it was also given the right to influence prices of plastic goods. The Ministry for Material Economy, which the Plastics Steering Office is part of, was designed to act as a go-between for many industries to prevent the disproportional distribution of goods, and thus is unlike many other ministries in that it does not represent a specific industry. One of its main tasks is to finding the most rational and efficient substitution of items made from natural materials with plastics. With the new efficiency engendered by these planning organisations and hence the increase in availability of plastic materials, the 1960s saw an expansion in the number of items being replaced by plastics in Krakozhia. However, quality was still an issue, and in response the Central Institute for Design was moved under the Krakozhian Office for Measurements and Goods Testing, giving industrial designers access to the production techniques of factories. Furthermore, in 1971, the Council of Ministers had a law passed that required factories to turn over their industrial design work to the Office for Industrial Design, allowing for the propagation of a single aesthetic vision of modern industrial design that served the socialist planned economy. Influence on culture and politics Plastics also had a cultural effect, being used to project an image of a socialist society that was forward looking and building a new future. Chemical factories and refineries were named after Communist leaders, and the symbols of the government slowly changed from hammers and sickles, raised fists, and red stars to test tubes, Bunsen burners, microscopes, rockets, chemical formulas, and Bohr-Rutherford atomic models. As plastics were often associated with cutting edge scientific advancements, they were also often connected by the government and media with the cult of socialist technology. See also *Economy of Krakozhia Category:Krakozhia Category:Economy of Krakozhia